Crockpot/Slow cooker Tips and Tricks

[Canadian In Atlanta]

[quote="Chef #1111462"]Whatever you cook in the crock pot, a good tip is to cover the top with a sheet of foil before putting on the lid. That way you are sure of an air tight seal, so flavours don't escape & also, you don't get cooking smells wafting round the house.[/quote]

The cooking smells are one of my favorite features of slow cooking!

[Chef Grandma Fran]

CanadianInAtlanta wrote:
[quote="Chef #1111462"]Whatever you cook in the crock pot, a good tip is to cover the top with a sheet of foil before putting on the lid. That way you are sure of an air tight seal, so flavours don't escape & also, you don't get cooking smells wafting round the house.

The cooking smells are one of my favorite features of slow cooking![/quote]

I had never thought of use of using foil to make an air tight seal on my crockpot. It would be sad to keep the smells from wafting around the house, as that's one of the BIG benefits of slow cooking. It helps you prepare for the meal.

Sometimes if I'm concerned about dried beans cooking on time, as in soup, towards the end I place a folded kitchen towel over the lid and keep heat from escaping through the lid (use a glass lid, not a plastic lid; you may have a glass lid the same size on one of your other cooking vessels and would not have to buy one).

For chunkier recipes, roasts for example, I use the crockpot cooking bags and it eliminates cleaning altogether. They can be used in other cooking pots. Rival has had them online and I guess they could be in stores too, not sure.

Lots of great recipes from RecipeZaar, but helpful hints go a long way also. Thanks.

[Red Apple Guy]

I've done the foil thang too. In fact, I've used just foil for larger items (like a turkey breast).

[RubberDucky AU]

Yes I agree, the cooking smells are one of the precious bonuses of cooking! Nothing is nicer than coming home to a house that smells delicious. Unless it's TIDY and delicious!

[DoughReMi]

Ahhhh....those smells wafting from the crockpot. Heavenly to me. My daughter, however, home from school in the summer, told me I am torturing her because she just can't wait for dinner. I don't have to ask twice for the table to be set on crockpot dinner nights.